The Israel Diamond Exchange (IDE) has terminated its partnership with Carats.io because the cryptocurrency company did not have regulatory approval. The IDE has required Carats.io to cease all public displays of association with the bourse and its Diamond Tech Innovation Center. The bourse has also asked the company to stop any activities on the trading floor or its online platforms.

Morgan Creek Blockchain Capital is tokenizing a private company's equity, turning its existing shares into new security tokens. The blockchain wing of Morgan Creek Capital Management, an investment advisor, announced Wednesday that it is working with Anexio Technology Services to convert all of its physical shares into an ERC-20 token. The ERC-20 standard allows for the creation of tokens on the ethereum network. The company plans to raise $40 million by selling the tokens to accredited investors.

IBM and a group of gold and diamond industry companies have announced the creation of “the first cross-industry initiative to use blockchain to trace the provenance of finished pieces of jewelry across the supply chain for increased transparency”, according to a press release.

What the food industry really needs is a trusted, traceable and easily accessible history of each product’s journey – from farm, to fork. And this is exactly what Blockchain can do. Every step in the food production and transportation cycle is verified (through the consensus of those involved) and recorded onto the Blockchain – guaranteeing security and immutability.

Iran banned the use of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies by banks and financial institutions on Monday amid ongoing debate over how best to regulate the technology. "The use of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in all the country's monetary and financial centres was banned," the central bank said in a statement overnight.

Al Kasir Jewellery Group from Dubai has launched three Crypto assets backed by certified diamonds. The new model uses “blockchain technology for the first time in the world”, according to a press release. The Al Kasir Group is owned by Ahmed Bin Obaid Al Maktoum and Dr. Amit Lakhanpal, an Indian entrepreneur who serves as the president of the company.